Kidnapping

"Whew, looks like we saw something incredible." Soji patted his chest and spoke to his two companions beside him, still shaken.

"I couldn't tell at all. That girl named Kushina Uzumaki is actually that strong." Uchiha Homura spoke solemnly, as if the number of people in class he could not defeat was steadily increasing.

"Yeah, Kushina is quite the character." Minato Namikaze glanced at several classmates in the distance who were still bruised and swollen, then smiled.

Soji and Uchiha Homura both looked at Minato Namikaze strangely after hearing that.

Even Uchiha Homura realized it by then. Minato Namikaze was very different from usual today.

He could not quite say how he was different, but something was definitely off.

"Shall we keep following her and take a look?" Soji suggested.

The two nodded.

So the three of them followed Kushina Uzumaki the whole way.

They watched as she waited until there were fewer people nearby before rushing out and viciously beating someone up. Every student she beat up had bullied or mocked her at school that day.

Soji wondered whether those students felt wronged. They had clearly only wanted to get Kushina Uzumaki's attention, yet they ended up suffering a brutal beating.

And Soji's group had witnessed every single crime scene along the way.

In the end, seeing that Kushina Uzumaki had no intention of taking revenge on any more students, the three stopped following her and prepared to head home separately.

"Hmm?"

"What is it, Soji?"

Seeing Soji standing where he was without any intention of leaving, Minato asked in confusion.

"I'm not sure. I want to use the Byakugan and take a look."

"Isn't there a rule against casually activating the Byakugan inside the village?"

Uchiha Homura had already taken a step to leave. Looking at Soji and Minato, he had no idea what Soji was up to.

"I'll explain it to the Military Police Force afterward. Byakugan, activate!"

With that, Soji activated the Byakugan.

Within his field of vision, Soji saw three shinobi sneaking behind Kushina Uzumaki, muttering to one another from time to time.

Then, two of them suddenly rushed out and blocked Kushina Uzumaki as she was about to go home, while the third had already quietly slipped behind her.

The shinobi approaching from behind took out a handkerchief. Before Kushina Uzumaki could react, he covered her mouth and nose with it.

Then he directly hoisted Kushina Uzumaki over his shoulder and carried her away.

"This is bad. Kushina seems to have been kidnapped. Let's go!"

Seeing this, Soji called out to the two beside him before taking off after them.

"What?! How could a kidnapping happen inside the village? And Soji, how did you notice something was wrong?"

Although Uchiha Homura was astonished, his feet did not slow down as he immediately followed Soji ahead of him.

Minato did not say anything, but his expression was terrible. Still, he did not doubt Soji's words.

"Maybe it was just a coincidence. When we were about to split up and go home, I saw a flock of crows suddenly startled into flight in the distance. Then I saw three shadows following Kushina, so I got curious," Soji explained.

Although the two were still puzzled by Soji's explanation, they did not say anything more. Perhaps Soji was simply more observant.

When the two stopped asking questions, Soji quietly breathed a sigh of relief. That was not the main reason, though. He remembered that Kushina Uzumaki had been kidnapped when she was young in the original story, so he had stayed alert and activated his Byakugan to test his suspicion.

Compared to receiving a warning from the Military Police Force, if something really happened to Kushina Uzumaki, he would never be able to forgive himself.

Reality was not manga. Anything could happen.

Soji and the other two quickly arrived at the place where Kushina Uzumaki had been kidnapped. Looking at the hair clip she had dropped on the ground, their expressions were grim.

"Homura, go notify the teachers at the academy. Have them inform Lord Hokage that Kushina Uzumaki has been kidnapped. Minato and I will continue tracking them. We'll leave signals along the way," Soji immediately arranged.

"Got it. I'm going now." At a time like this, Uchiha Homura naturally would not hesitate. This was a kidnapping, and there was no time to waste discussing who should do what.

The three then split up. Soji activated the Byakugan and followed the kidnappers together with Minato.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.

The two soon pursued them out of the village, their expressions growing increasingly anxious.

"This is bad. They seem to have noticed us following them. One person is coming our way."

Through his Byakugan, Soji could clearly see one of the three people ahead suddenly stop and remain behind to wait for them.

"In that case, we'll have to force our way through." Minato said with a grim expression.

The two quickly saw the shinobi left behind to cover the retreat.

"Who are you? Why did you kidnap Kushina?" Minato urgently demanded.

If it were merely an ordinary kidnapping, that would be one thing. But if other factors were involved, Kushina Uzumaki's life might be in danger.

"Heh, I thought Konoha's Anbu had discovered our operation. Turns out it's just two brats who haven't even been weaned yet. Tch." The shinobi opposite them was filled with contempt.

After all, he was a dignified elite shinobi from Kumogakure in the Land of Lightning. Of course he had every right to disdain two children like them.

"Konoha's? You're a spy from another hidden village! Why did you target Kushina?" Minato immediately caught the key information in the man's words.

Soji knew they were likely after the Nine-Tails inside Kushina Uzumaki, so he did not ask further.

But he could not exactly explain to Minato why he knew Kushina Uzumaki was the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.

"You're so young, yet so alert. Too bad you aren't children of our village. I suppose I'll have to send you to hell. If you want someone to blame, blame yourselves for following us." The other man was not foolish enough to reveal the village behind him directly.

As his words fell, both sides drew their weapons.

Soji and Minato were on high alert, while the enemy shinobi's face was full of cruelty.

"Minato, we've fought each other so many times, but we've never worked together before, have we? Want to give it a try today?" Soji asked excitedly.

"Yeah. I'd like to see how well we work together too." Minato looked at Soji with a faint smile, though he was still deeply worried inside.

But no matter how worried they were about Kushina Uzumaki, they knew that unless they dealt with the enemy before them, she could not be rescued.

Without further probing, Soji charged forward. The Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist was meant for close combat.

As Soji moved, Minato immediately threw the shuriken in his hand, aiming straight for the enemy's heart. This was a battle of life and death. There was no room for mercy!

"Heh, childish." After mocking them, the shinobi opposite them raised his kunai to block the incoming shuriken.

"Ninja Art—Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

"What?!"

The two shuriken Minato had thrown suddenly multiplied at an astonishing rate, instantly filling the space before the enemy shinobi.

There was no way he could completely dodge them now. He could only do his best to avoid the shuriken aimed at his vital points and use his kunai to block the rest.

He truly had not expected a child who had not even graduated from the Ninja Academy to use a ninjutsu that even ordinary chunin could not perform, causing him to immediately fall into a disadvantage.

Battles between shinobi were like this. Having greater strength did not mean you could absolutely crush your opponent.

There were countless cases in the shinobi world where someone clearly stronger than their opponent was killed in a counterattack because of a momentary lapse in judgment.

Soji and Minato's individual strength had already surpassed that of genin. They could fight ordinary chunin on even terms, much less when they were determined to go all out.

But the elite shinobi spy opposite them did not see it that way. In his eyes, it was already a blessing if two little brats had learned the Three Body Technique at their age.

How could they possibly threaten an elite shinobi like him? From the beginning, he had only intended to toy with them.

Soji and Minato's cooperation could unleash strength far beyond that of ordinary chunin.

Meanwhile, because the enemy elite shinobi had underestimated them, he could not even bring out strength at the level of a chunin. That was why he had instantly fallen into a disadvantage.

Soji and Minato's plan was simple. Soji would charge in to draw the enemy's attention, allowing Minato behind him to seize the chance to use the Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu.

The enemy shinobi's judgment was the exact opposite of what Soji and Minato had expected.

He thought Minato's shuriken from the rear were meant to cover Soji's attack. He had not expected it all to be a feint.

Squelch! Squelch! Squelch! Clang! Clang! Clang!

After the sounds of shuriken piercing flesh and kunai deflecting shuriken, both sides pulled apart to create some distance.

After all, the enemy was an elite shinobi. In terms of speed and strength alone, Soji and Minato were far inferior.

Soji might have crushed Uchiha Homura, but against a serious elite shinobi, if the other party wanted to flee, Soji could not catch up even on horseback.

"Pant... pant... You two little brats are good. I was originally going to let you die without pain, but I've changed my mind. I'll make you suffer every kind of torture before I kill you." Madness was already visible in the bloodshot eyes of the enemy shinobi.

That was only natural. Just look at how miserable he was now. A shuriken was lodged in his right leg, left hand, and abdomen, while blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. He was clearly badly injured.

Most importantly, the ones who had inflicted such serious injuries on a dignified elite shinobi of Kumogakure were two little brats!

This was utterly intolerable. If word got back to the village, he would never be able to face anyone again. He might as well buy a block of tofu and smash his head into it.

He could already imagine the other elite shinobi greeting him whenever they met.

Oh, isn't this the elite shinobi who got badly injured by two Konoha children who hadn't even graduated from the Ninja Academy, then ran away with his tail between his legs?

At that thought, the Kumogakure elite shinobi felt his wounds hurt even more.

"This time, I won't underestimate you. Even injured, dealing with two little brats like you will be easy."

The Kumogakure elite shinobi had only one thought now. Even if this mission failed, he would erase the two little brats who had brought him endless humiliation!

Soji and Minato exchanged a look. They did not need words; both understood what the other was thinking.

This time, Soji would attack while Minato provided cover!

"Gentle Fist—Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!"

After taking the opening stance of the Gentle Fist, Soji silently recited the words in his heart.

Immediately afterward, Soji rushed at the shinobi before him. Just like before, Minato also threw shuriken and made a fake motion as though he were about to use the Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu.

"Hmph, brats will be brats. Do you think the same tactic will work on me twice?" The Kumogakure elite shinobi once again expressed his contempt.

Sure enough, the pride ingrained in the bones of the Kumogakure elite shinobi made him look down on two young brats even after he had been injured.

What a joke!

He was a dignified elite shinobi of Kumogakure. How could he possibly fall for the same tactic twice?

Therefore, before the shuriken even reached him, he took two steps to the side in advance, intending to rush over and kill Minato Namikaze in the rear first.

In the Kumogakure elite shinobi's view, the brat attacking from range was the only one with any threat. As for the Byakugan brat in front of him, he was merely there to make up the numbers and provide cover.

He had even paid special attention to that Hyuga Clan brat at first, only to get himself injured because of it.

The Kumogakure elite shinobi had already decided that after killing these two brats and catching up with his companions, he would absolutely tell them that he had killed two Konoha elite shinobi.

He absolutely could not let them know that he had been injured by two Konoha brats!

Absolutely not!